i sent
a
letter
to
my father
today.

wrote it
on
the back
of
a pack of marlboros
and
placed
it
in
an empty
can
of
beer.

just a note of thanks.

i
have
given
time and space
a lot
of
thought.

i scribbled carefully,

john ennenbach
father
streator illinois
two thousand and three.

i
don’t
want
to imagine him
reading it
looking
at the pictures
of
the
kids
he
never
got to
hold.

i’m sorry.

i just wanted him to know.